Strong second half carries Evessa past Lakestars

The Osaka Evessa took care of business at both ends of the court on Saturday evening, defeating the visiting Shiga Lakestars 79-64.

Rick Rickert led the Evessa (5-18) with 18 points and 13 rebounds and Mike Bell and Masashi Obuchi each scored 13 points. Shota Konno had nine points and five assists and Dwayne Lathan had seven points for Osaka, which has won three of its past four games.

Ray Nixon paced Shiga (14-11) with 16 points, but was 2-for-7 on 3-point shots. The Lakestars were 6-for-31 from beyond the arc, including Shinya Ogawa’s 1-for-7. Dionisio Gomez had 15 points and nine boards and Jumpei Nakama scored eight points in the loss.

Osaka outscored Shiga 47-27 in the second half at Sumiyoshi Sports Center.

Jeral Davis scored 29 points with 16 rebounds and five blocks for the Susanoo Magic (16-9). Brandon Freeman scored 19 points, B.J. Puckett had 14 and Michael Parker, who was limited to 24 minutes due to an injury, scored 10.

Crane Thunders 77, B-Corsairs 74

In Yokohama, Jermaine Dixon scored 17 points and Kenya Tomori dished out eight assists as Gunma recovered from a 22-9 deficit after one quarter to defeat the hosts.

The expansion Crane Thunders improved to 5-20; the B-Corsairs fell to 17-8.

“Big win for us against one of the top teams in the league,” Crane Thunders coach Ryan Blackwell said. “We got down early but did a good job to fight back in the second quarter. Yuto was the spark offensively in the second. He had another big game for us overall.

“I thought we did a better job covering the pick-and-roll today, which we haven’t been. Hopefully, (on Sunday) we can be consistent and play with the same amount of energy and effort as today.”

Draelon Burns was Yokohama’s high scorer with 17 points, Masayuki Kabaya scored 15, Kenji Yamada had 11 and Pape Faye Mour 10. Burns chipped in with eight rebounds, six assists and three steals.

89ers 74, Albirex BB 71

In Sendai, the hosts ended the series with a victory after dropping the first two games in successive days.

“This was a bruising battle between two teams trying to survive this third game in three days,” Sendai coach Bob Pierce said. “T.J. and Taku (Komoda) proved to be a great combination for the second day in a row, only today we also got the win to show for it.”

On Friday, the duo combined for 43 points in an 86-73 defeat to the Albirex.

“We learned from the last two games what to concentrate on, and the effort and intensity on defense carried us through,” Pierce said. “There were contributions from many players, much needed because Hikaru (Kusaka) was out with an illness, and maybe none more important than from Daichi “Jose” Shimoyama. He came in for a crucial couple of minutes when we needed defensive stops, and he also hit two free throws after being fouled on a fast break.

“This was a nice way for us to finish up before the All Star break, with our All Star, Taku, really playing like one for the third consecutive game.”

Northern Happinets 92, Cinq Reves 73

In Tokyo, Akita erupted for 41 fourth-quarter points, outscoring the hosts by 25 points in the final stanza, to salvage a series split.

In Hamamatsu, Wendell White had a game-best 28 points, Jeffrey Parmer scored 17 points and Shoji Nakanishi and Kevin Galloway each had 13 as the hosts trounced Fukuoka.

Galloway added 11 rebounds and seven assists for Hamamatsu (18-9), which put 38 points on the board in the fourth quarter and held Fukuoka to 21. Parmer handed out nine assists for the Phoenix, who collected 12 steals.

Tsukino was the team leader in assists (six) and steals (four). Okosa had nine rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block. Sneed grabbed 10 rebounds. Blackledge made two blocks for Eastern Conference-leading Iwate (19-6).